Mask for typewriter or like machine



Aug. 12, 1947. c. MYERS MASK FOR TYPEWRITER OR LIKE MACHINE Original Filed June 2, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l vim'\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ I Aug. 12, 1947.

L. c. MYERS MASK FOR TYPEWRITER OR LIKE MACHINE Original Filed Junefi, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Aug. 12, 1947 MASK FOR TYPEWRITER OR LIKE MACHINE Lewis 0. Myers, Freeport, N. Y., assignor to Royal Typewriter Company, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Original application June 2, 1944, Serial No. 538,448. Divided and thisapplication March 28, 1945, Serial No. 585,335

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to typewriting or like machines and more particularly to hinged masks or covers for such machines equipped with closures or panels adapted to be displaced or moved from openings in the mask'or frame walls for rendering mechanism mounted within the masks accessible for adjusting, cleaning, or servicing.

This application is a division of the copending application of Lewis G. Myers, Serial Number 538,448, filed June 2, 1944, which has matured into Patent No. 2,418,043.

In many commercial machines of the class referred to the mask or frame walls are formed with openings which normally are closed by removable panels or inserts held in the openings by friction grip lugs or similar fastening devices. In order to remove the closures or panels it has been necessary to raise the mask hood and insert a screw driver or other tool inside of the mask and to pry the panel or closure loose.

An object of the present invention is to provide a typewriter or like machine in which a closure or panel is mounted on an outer frame or mask by a hinge of improved construction and of neat appearance.

Another object of the invention is to provide a typewriter or like machine including a mask or frame formed with an access opening normally closed by a panel or closure mounted on the frame or mask by hinges so constructed as to facilitate assembly of the closure or panel on the frame or mask and which, furthermore, are so constructed as to be unobtrusive or substantially invisible from the outside of the machine.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following description of a preferred embodiment, the appended claims, and the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a typewriter embodying the invention with some parts broken away and others shown in vertical section.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary detail vertical section drawn on an enlarged scale and showing a latch device for releasably holding a hinged front wall panel or closure in its normal closed upright position and indicating the open position of the panel in dotted lines to show the cooperation of a spring latch finger with a stop carried by the main frame.

Figure 3 is a rear elevational view drawn on a reduced scale as compared to Figure 1 and showing the hinged mounting of the movable front panel or closure on a lower fixed front wall frame portion. The parts are shown as viewed in elevation when looking in the direction of the arrows 3-3 in Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 but showing the lower front wall portion and the upper front panel or closure in separated relation in order more clearly to illustrate hinge parts formed respectively on the two front wall parts.

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section taken axially through a part of the hinge connection between the lower front wall portion and the movable upper front panel or closure.

Figure 6 is a section on the irregular line 6-6 of Figure 1 and drawn on an enlarged scale;

Figure '7 is a fragmentary horizontal section on the line 1-1 of Figure 6; and

Figure 8 is a fragmentary Vertical section on the line 88 of Figure 6.

The invention is illustrated as being embodied in a typewriting machine which, except for the displaceable panels or covers and associated parts, has the same general construction as the well known Royal standard typewriter. Among the well known parts illustrated is a main frame A having right and left side wall members I 0 and II) respectively and a top shelf I I. Key levers I2 fulcrumed as at [3 on a cross bar I4 project forwardly through a comb guide 15 secured to a lower front cross bar l6 equipped with a key lever cushion stop IT. The usual upper front cross bar l8 mounts a pivot rod I9 on which is mounted a plurality of type action front levers one of which is shown at 20. A link 2| is connected in the usual manner between the illustrated front lever 20 and one of the key levers I2, and a link 22 is connected between the front lever 20 and a type bar 23 pivoted on a type bar segment 24. Other key levers l2 are connected through other and similar type actions to other type bars mounted on the segment 24. The usual type bar head rest is shown at 25.

The upper front cross bar l8 also provides a pivotal mounting at l9 for a, lever 26 connected in the usual manner through a link 2'! to a tabular stop clear mechanism (not shown). The lever 26 is adapted to be operated from time to time during normal use of the machine by means of a finger piece or push key 28 which projects forwardly beyond the front of the machine frame. Also extending forwardly beyond the front of the frame for operation from time to time during normal use of the machine are finger pieces including a ribbon reverse handle 29, ribbon reverse knob 39, bichrome stencil stop, handle: 3i,

and tabular stop set key stem 32.

Other conventional parts showninclude a plat-- en 33 and a top cover or hood memberwhich;

is hinged or pivoted 35 on. brackets 3'5" carried by the frame top shelf-H1 The hood 'd l' is urged: to its raised or dotted line position shown in Fig-e ure 1 by coiled springs, one of which is. shown; at31. "I

One of the features of the; machine disclosed in the drawings and claimed in application; fierlal No, 538,448 previously referredto. is a construe tion enabling.- panel; or closures to be displaceable easily from their normal or closed positions, fii'order'toprovide access to parts or'the mecha improvedmeans for-latching the panel 38 in its closed position in a manner to prevent rattling. In the form shown a keeper member 52 is connected as by spot welding to the inside of the panel: 39 and has'a lockin or latching. part formed with a notch having inclined walls 53-53 which converge toward each other at the root or' bottom of the notch. A latch lever member 55 'is pivotedon a pearing 55 carried by a frame bracket 55 which mounts a tie rod shown in part 2 at 5l in= Figure 6. The lever 54 is formed with x a locking or'latchingpart 58 adapted to be moved into' the" notch 's o'as to engage simultaneously both-incl-inedwa1ls753- -53. The latching part 58 nism, housed within the main frame or mask.

Panels normally closing; openings in the frame or ,Inaskv walls are adapted to be released and there'- byjopened bythe simple expedient of pressing a bllttonj or otherwise releasing a catch or fastend a .i 1 j It frequently is desirable t'o-obtain' access to the mechanism adjacent their'ame side walls. Accordingly themask; side walls l9" and-Aware for-med T respectively with access? openings 38-38 adabtedinormally to be' covered. by relatively movable mask. closure :rnembers'or panels 39 and 39 respectively. -The right ihandiclosure (the closurepatithe "front .asVieWed in "Figure? 1'), is adapted when in closed-position to lie within the opening 58' and-is formed with a flange id-which stiffens --the closure andwhich may also engage a lip Miormed on the frame or mask wall In for limiting ewerde d si i creme o t e panel Hinge means generally designated. :32 are pro-1 vided adjacent opposite enesior the closure 39 for mountingit to swing about 'anaxis adjacent the a bottom of the opening 38. The'hinge' means 42 may be of identical construction. so'that. only one need. be described. Each hinge me'an'sdz com prises a pair "of. spaced; axially aligned .sleeve's 43-543 formed; integrally with the bottom edge I portion; of, thepanel 39;" Disposed between'ithe f pair of' sleeves "i3-:43 isajsecond pair of sleeves 44- 44fformed'on' a bracket 45. Whichis secured by screwsiefi to. 'a *lu'g dl on" the frame 'wall H3. Hinge pins :48 extend respectively through. adja' centf fsleeves dii and 44' and are formed with re duce'd' diarhter ste'msl projecting toward'ea'ch' r other in-the space betweenthe twohinge'sleeves M44, A coiled spring 5i!"surroundingthefstem's is preloa'ded that its opposite-endportions' press against -the=lug4l andthe closure 39 respectively'ifonurging the {closure to'swin out'- Wardly tothe open position indicated in dotted lines inj Figure fiE Outward sw-inging'of the closure to this "position is liinite'd by engagement of the outside bottom surface -o-f the closure with the'edge portion 3820f the bottom wall of the 0pening33. .17; r ma l.

In accordance with the invention the hingeme'ans-GZ mounting the panel 35 within the'opening'38 and' the springs 50 'for urging the panel to open position are substantially hidden so'as not" i to produce an-unsig'htly outside appearance of the mask; The hinge means-42 are so constructed as inherently to provide this advantage. Inorder to hide the springs 50 from view the panel 39 is formed 'with twoshroudportions 5| curved concentrically=with the sleeves t3 and 44 so as to shield the springs 56- from view an so as to merge: with. the flange 4!] to form a continuous arcuate edge along the bottom of the panel 39.

The illustrated construction includes novel and normallyisheldyieldably in the notch under the urge of a spring 59 interposed between and i' connected respectively to the key lever fulcrum l5 and an operating arm 653 forming part of the latch lever 54. A handle 61 connected to the arm 69 extends through an aperture 62' in the: side wall liL'theoutwardly projecting-end of'the handle 6! being equipped with a finger knob piece Normally the closure or panel 353 is positioned within the opening 38 as s'howninFigure 6. The.

spring '59 urges the latch'lever 56 so as-to cause the lever latching part' 58 topress simultanecusly in substantially opposite directions on the netch walls 53 which at this timestraddle thelatch part 58. In this way the latch part58 hol keeper 52 and the panel 39 firmly againstzr'oc ing in either direction so as effectively to pre i vent even" slight movement of the'panel'gfll'whichi would-cause rattling when themachine is on erated; Figure 6 shows the'panel'flange l'llin engagement withthe. frame lip :4:l,-but it will be:

understood that, .making allowances 'for-"manu facturing tolerances, theremay be av'er'y 'small clearance between. the flange 40 and "the lip M 1.

sition shown in dotted lines-at 33in Figure 6.

Theleft Closure or panel 395maybe formed and equipped with a latchv similarly to the 010-. sure39. g

Constructions. embodying j the: invention may also include-a cover or .panel disposed at the front of. the machine frame and mounted so asi to'be displaceable'fo'r providing access for easily changing the ribbon spools or cleaning or serve-- icing the parts more easily than can be doneby.

merelylifting thejhoodfim in accordance with the practice heretofore usually followed. 'Intheillus-ltrative embodiment the frame or mask. includes a relatively fixed lower front wall member or panel portion 64 secured to the lowerfront' crossbar w I6 by screws 6'51which' a1soserve"to mountthef comb guide I 5' on the. cross bar l6. Arela'tively movable upper front wall. panel memberfjor closure 66 -is hinged ia long its bottom edge "to the' top edge -o'f the lowerrront-wall' member 64 and is adapted to be swungfrom theclo'sed position shown in Figure lto the dotted'line or'open'poe' sition for providing access to mechanism inside The hinge means for mounting the panel or closure 66 on the wall portion 64 is similar to the.

hinge means 42 referred to in the description of the mounting of the panel 39 on the'frame wall Ill. The lower front wall portion 64' is formed with hinge sleeves 61 ,61 61 61 61 61 and the upper panel 66is formed with sleeve 68*, 68' 68, 8 68. The hinge sleeves on the wall portion 64 and the panel 66 are positioned so as to be interfitted as shown clearly in Figures 3 and 4. A hinge pin 69 extends through the sleeves 68 61 68 and 6'! and is formed with a reduced diameter stem 69 A hinge pin 10 extends through the sleeves 61 68, and 61 and is formed at its opposite ends with reduced diameter stems l6- and 10 -A hinge pin H extends through the sleeves 68 67 3 68 and 67 and is formed with a reduced diameter stem 1 l The panel 66 is urged outwardly to its open position by coil springs 12 and 13. The spring 12 surrounds the stems 69 and 16* while the spring 13 surrounds the stems 16 and H The springs T2 and '13 are preloaded so that their opposite ends press respectively on the lower frame wall portion 64 and the panel 66 to urge the latter toward its open position.

In order to render the springs 12 and 13 invisible from the front of the machine the lower front wall portion 64 is formed integrally with shrouds 61 and 6'! which are curved concentrically with the associated hinge sleeves and are positioned to cover the springs 1.2 and 13.

The hood 34 is so constructed that when it is in closed position it interengages with the upper portion of the panel '66 for holding the latter in its closed or substantially upright position. To this end the hood 34 is formed with a depending skirt 14 adapted to overlap or extend in front of the upper portion of the panel 66. When the hood 34 and panel 66 are thus relatively positioned both are held releasably against movement by engagement of hood mounted looking or latching parts '85 with latching or looking parts comprising resilient spring members 16 mounted on a rearwardly oflset ledge 11 at the top of the panel 66. When the parts 34 and 66 are in the closed positions shown in full lines in Figure 1 the hood looking or latching parts 14-75 straddle the upper locking part of the panel 66 so as in effect to hold the panel in a cushioned grip and. prevent rattling. One or more stop lugs 16 secured to the hood 34 are adapted to engage the ledge 11 for limiting the downward swinging of the hood 34.

It will be apparent that in order to lift the hood 34 it is necessary merely to press upwardly on the front of the hood sufiiciently to overcome the holding action of the resilient spring latch parts 16. At times, for example when it is desired merely to clean the type heads, it is sufficient to lift the hood 34 without permitting the panel 66 to move or to be moved to open position. Ac-

cordingly, means are provided which act independently of the hood 34 for latching the panel 66 in its closed position. In the form shown a .keeper I8 is secured as by spot welding to the inner surface of the lower front Wall portion 64 .and is cooperable with a spring latch finger 79 secured to the inside of the panel 66. The latch :finger I9 is formed with a nose part 80 adapted to engage under a latch part 8| on the keeper. Operating means for releasing the latch finger 19 from the keeper 18 includes a push button 82 mounted to project through thelower front stem 83 urgesthe push button8'2 forwardly to its normal or inactive. position, action of a the spring 85 being limited by engagement'of a stop pin 86 with the keeper [8. It will be apparent that when the push button 82 is moved rearwardly the finger 19 will be flexed to disengage the nose from the keeper latch part 8|, whereupon the springs 12 and 13 will swing the panel 66 to open position providing, of course, that the hood 34 previously-has been raised. 1

In order to prevent damage to the hinge connecting the front wall parts 64 and 66 and in order to provide for bringing the panel 66 quietly to rest in its open-position, a stop 81 is mounted on the frame crossbar l8 so asto be'engageable with the heel 84 of the spring latch finger 19 when the panel 66 moves to open position, "Inasmuch as the finger 19 is resilient it will yield so as to bring the panel 66 to restquietly and without any harmful shock or undesirable noise.

The front panel 66 is formed with apertures 28*, 26 38 3, 32 for accommodating respectively the parts 28, 29, 30, 3| and 32 previously referred to. These parts extend forwardly of the panel 66 when the latter is in its closed position so as to be accessible for manipulation from time to time during normal use of the machine without its being necessary to move the panel 66 to open "position. The apertures are large enough to provide sufficient clearance between the aperture walls and the adjustable parts projecting therethrough for enabling the panel 66 to move about its hinge without touching the adjustable parts.

The construction shown herein embodies the invention in the form now preferred but it will be understood that some changes may be made without departing from the invention as defined in the claims.

I claim:

1. In a mask suitable for housing typewriter mechanism, a fixed and hinged panel construction comprising a relatively fixed panel; a first pair of axially aligned spaced sleeves on an edge of said relatively fixed panel and formed integrally with said relatively fixed panel; a relatively movable panel; a second pair of spaced sleeves on an edge of said relatively movable panel, formed integrally with said relatively movable panel and aligned axially with the sleeves of said first pair, both sleeves of one of said pairs being disposed between the sleeves of the other of said pairs; a pair of hinge pins respectively extending through adjacent sleeves of different pairs of sleeves; reduced diameter stems formed integrally with and projecting from said pins towards each other in the space between the sleeves of said one of said pairs; a coil spring surrounding said stems and having its ends engaging said relatively fixed panel and said relatively movable panel respectively for urging said relatively movable panel from a first to a second predetermined position, in one of which positions it is substantially aligned with the relatively fixed panel; and a shroud formed integrally on one of said panels and having a portion curved substantially concentrically with said sleeves and rendering said spring and said pin stems invisible from outside said panel construction when said relatively movable panel is in the one of its positions in which it is substantially aligned with the relatively fixed panel,

2. In a mask suitable for housing typewriter mechanism, a fixed and hinged panel construction comprising a relatively fixed sheet metal panel, a first pair of axially aligned sleeves on an edgeof said panel and formed integrally with sai-c1;pane1; a relatively movable =sheet metal panel; 'a-second pair of spaced sleeves *on =an-edge sa-idipairs; acOilspring'surrounding :said stems and'having its :ends engaging saidlrelatively fixed paneland "said relatively movable panel respectively for -urgingrsaid relatively movable panel from r=a first "to a second predetermined position,

in one'ofwhich-positions it is substantially aligned 7 construction when said relatively movable panel is in the one 'of its positions in which fit is ,substantially aligned with the relatively fixedpanel, saidpanels being of substantially equal thickness and said-sleeves :and said shroud being of substantially equal outer radii and substantially equalthickness, the reduced diameter of said with the relatively fixed panel; and a-shroud 20 formedintegrally 'on one 'of said panels and havingza portion curved substantially concentrically WifihiSBiid sleeves and rendering said spring and .saigd-rpin stems invisible from outside said ,panel pin stems providing space vfor accommodating said spring within and out of contact with said shroud. V

, LEWIS C. MYERS,

REFERENQES QITED The-:-following references are of record in the file -of this patent: V 1

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number :Name Date 317,410 Niles .."May-5 1885 968,584 Miller -Aug.':30,1910 1,510,563 Seibe; Oct. 1, 192

291,169 Duncan V Jan.1', 18 84 1,845,402 Dowd- Feb. 16, 1932 2,126 ,315 Dobson 1Aug. ;9,;1938 

